Diet Overhaul Part I: List of Essential Vitamins and Minerals

In an attempt to be my optimal self, I am taking my health very seriously and monitoring everything that I put in my body. Now that I have eliminated most of the toxic foods I used to eat, I wanted to be proactive and eat for a purpose. I need to understand exactly what it is that will make my body run efficiently, so I am using the following source from Harvard Medical School of the vitamins and minerals we need for various physical and mental function as a starting point in creating my diet:

Source

VITAMIN	BENEFITS	GOOD FOOD SOURCES
RETINOIDS AND CAROTENE (vitamin A; includes retinol, retinal, retinyl esters, and retinoic acid and are also referred to as "preformed"" vitamin A. Beta carotene can easily be converted to vitamin A as needed.)"	Essential for vision Lycopene may lower prostate cancer risk. Keeps tissues and skin healthy. Plays an important role in bone growth and in the immune system. Diets rich in the carotenoids alpha carotene and lycopene seem to lower lung cancer risk. Carotenoids act as antioxidants. Foods rich in the carotenoids lutein and zeaxanthin may protect against cataracts	Sources of retinoids: beef liver, eggs, shrimp, fish, fortified milk, butter, cheddar cheese, Swiss cheese Sources of beta carotene: sweet potatoes, carrots, pumpkins, squash, spinach, mangoes, turnip greens
THIAMIN (vitamin B1)	Helps convert food into energy. Needed for healthy skin, hair, muscles, and brain and is critical for nerve function.	Pork chops, brown rice, ham, soymilk, watermelons, acorn squash
RIBOFLAVIN(vitamin B2)	Helps convert food into energy. Needed for healthy skin, hair, blood, and brain	Milk, eggs, yogurt, cheese, meats, green leafy vegetables, whole and enriched grains and cereals.
NIACIN (vitamin B3, nicotinic acid)	Helps convert food into energy. Essential for healthy skin, blood cells, brain, and nervous system	Meat, poultry, fish, fortified and whole grains, mushrooms, potatoes, peanut butter
PANTOTHENIC ACID (vitamin B5)	Helps convert food into energy. Helps make lipids (fats), neurotransmitters, steroid hormones, and hemoglobin	Wide variety of nutritious foods, including chicken, egg yolk, whole grains, broccoli, mushrooms, avocados, tomato products
PYRIDOXINE (vitamin B6, pyridoxal, pyridoxine, pyridoxamine)	Aids in lowering homocysteine levels and may reduce the risk of heart diseaseHelps convert tryptophan to niacin and serotonin, a neurotransmitter that plays key roles in sleep, appetite, and moods. Helps make red blood cells Influences cognitive abilities and immune function	Meat, fish, poultry, legumes, tofu and other soy products, potatoes, noncitrus fruits such as bananas and watermelons
COBALAMIN (vitamin B12)	Aids in lowering homocysteine levels and may lower the risk of heart disease. Assists in making new cells and breaking down some fatty acids and amino acids. Protects nerve cells and encourages their normal growth Helps make red blood cells and DNA	Meat, poultry, fish, milk, cheese, eggs, fortified cereals, fortified soymilk
BIOTIN	Helps convert food into energy and synthesize glucose. Helps make and break down some fatty acids. Needed for healthy bones and hair	Many foods, including whole grains, organ meats, egg yolks, soybeans, and fish
ASCORBIC ACID (vitamin C)	Foods rich in vitamin C may lower the risk for some cancers, including those of the mouth, esophagus, stomach, and breast. Long-term use of supplemental vitamin C may protect against cataracts. Helps make collagen, a connective tissue that knits together wounds and supports blood vessel walls. Helps make the neurotransmitters serotonin and norepinephrine Acts as an antioxidant, neutralizing unstable molecules that can damage cells. Bolsters the immune system	Fruits and fruit juices (especially citrus), potatoes, broccoli, bell peppers, spinach, strawberries, tomatoes, Brussels sprouts
CHOLINE	Helps make and release the neurotransmitter acetylcholine, which aids in many nerve and brain activities. Plays a role in metabolizing and transporting fats	Many foods, especially milk, eggs, liver, salmon, and peanuts
CALCIFEROL (vitamin D)	Helps maintain normal blood levels of calcium and phosphorus, which strengthen bones. Helps form teeth and bones. Supplements can reduce the number of non-spinal fractures	Fortified milk or margarine, fortified cereals, fatty fish
ALPHA-TOCOPHEROL (vitamin E)	Acts as an antioxidant, neutralizing unstable molecules that can damage cells. Protects vitamin A and certain lipids from damage. Diets rich in vitamin E may help prevent Alzheimer's disease.	Wide variety of foods, including vegetable oils, salad dressings and margarines made with vegetable oils, wheat germ, leafy green vegetables, whole grains, nuts
FOLIC ACID(vitamin B9, folate, folacin)	Vital for new cell creationHelps prevent brain and spine birth defects when taken early in pregnancy; should be taken regularly by all women of child-bearing age since women may not know they are pregnant in the first weeks of pregnancy. Can lower levels of homocysteine and may reduce heart disease risk May reduce risk for colon cancer. Offsets breast cancer risk among women who consume alcohol	Fortified grains and cereals, asparagus, okra, spinach, turnip greens, broccoli, legumes like black-eyed peas and chickpeas, orange juice, tomato juice
PHYLLOQUINONE, MENADIONE (vitamin K)	Activates proteins and calcium essential to blood clotting. May help prevent hip fractures	Cabbage, liver, eggs, milk, spinach, broccoli, sprouts, kale, collards, and other green vegetables
MINERAL	BENEFITS	GOOD FOOD SOURCES
CALCIUM	Builds and protects bones and teeth. Helps with muscle contractions and relaxation, blood clotting, and nerve impulse transmission. Plays a role in hormone secretion and enzyme activation. Helps maintain healthy blood pressure	Yogurt, cheese, milk, tofu, sardines, salmon, fortified juices, leafy green vegetables, such as broccoli and kale (but not spinach or Swiss chard, which have binders that lessen absorption)
CHLORIDE	Balances fluids in the body. A component of stomach acid, essential to digestion	Salt (sodium chloride), soy sauce, processed foods
CHROMIUM	Enhances the activity of insulin, helps maintain normal blood glucose levels, and is needed to free energy from glucose	Meat, poultry, fish, eggs, potatoes, some cereals, nuts, cheese
COPPER	Plays an important role in iron metabolism and immune system. Helps make red blood cells	Liver, shellfish, nuts, seeds, whole-grain products, beans, prunes, cocoa, black pepper
FLUORIDE	Encourages strong bone formation. Keeps dental cavities from starting or worsening	Water that is fluoridated, toothpaste with fluoride, marine fish, teas
IODINE	Part of thyroid hormone, which helps set body temperature and influences nerve and muscle function, reproduction, and growth. Prevents goiter and a congenital thyroid disorder	Iodized salt, processed foods, seafood
IRON	Helps hemoglobin in red blood cells and myoglobin in muscle cells ferry oxygen throughout the body. Needed for chemical reactions in the body and for making amino acids, collagen, neurotransmitters, and hormones	Red meat, poultry, eggs, fruits, green vegetables, fortified bread and grain products
MAGNESIUM	Needed for many chemical reactions in the body Works with calcium in muscle contraction, blood clotting, and regulation of blood pressure. Helps build bones and teeth	Green vegetables such as spinach and broccoli, legumes, cashews, sunflower seeds and other seeds, halibut, whole-wheat bread, milk
MANGANESE	Helps form bones. Helps metabolize amino acids, cholesterol, and carbohydrates	Fish, nuts, legumes, whole grains, tea
MOLYBDENUM	Part of several enzymes, one of which helps ward off a form of severe neurological damage in infants that can lead to early death	Legumes, nuts, grain products, milk
PHOSPHORUS	Helps build and protect bones and teeth. Part of DNA and RNA. Helps convert food into energy. Part of phospholipids, which carry lipids in blood and help shuttle nutrients into and out of cells	Wide variety of foods, including milk and dairy products, meat, fish, poultry, eggs, liver, green peas, broccoli, potatoes, almonds
POTASSIUM	Balances fluids in the body. Helps maintain steady heartbeat and send nerve impulses. Needed for muscle contractions. A diet rich in potassium seems to lower blood pressure. Getting enough potassium from your diet may benefit bones	Meat, milk, fruits, vegetables, grains, legumes
SELENIUM	Acts as an antioxidant, neutralizing unstable molecules that can damage cells. Helps regulate thyroid hormone activity	Organ meats, seafood, walnuts, sometimes plants (depends on soil content), grain products
SODIUM	Balances fluids in the body. Helps send nerve impulses. Needed for muscle contractions. Impacts blood pressure; even modest reductions in salt consumption can lower blood pressure	Salt, soy sauce, processed foods, vegetables
SULFUR	Helps form bridges that shape and stabilize some protein structures. Needed for healthy hair, skin, and nails	Protein-rich foods, such as meats, fish, poultry, nuts, legumes
ZINC	Helps form many enzymes and proteins and create new cells. Frees vitamin A from storage in the liver. Needed for immune system, taste, smell, and wound healing. When taken with certain antioxidants, zinc may delay the progression of age-related macular degeneration	Red meat, poultry, oysters and some other seafood, fortified cereals, beans, nuts
*Recommended dietary allowance **Adequate intake

To my surprise, the diet I put together without this list is very close to getting at least some quantity of all the vitamins and minerals. The first phase of my diet overhaul is identifying the sources of these vitamins and minerals and including them in my diet.

Some Immediate Adjustments

• Ensure at least 30 minutes in the sun to get sufficient Vitamin D
• Include leafy greens every day for multiple vitamins and minerals
• Eat sunflower seeds every day (I have bags of the stuff, I managed to find a cheap source) to get enough Copper, Magnesium, and Selenium, though I may need additional Selenium beyond the seeds
• See if I can replace my crappy cheap bagged black tea with a decent loose leaf tea to get Fluoride and be a better source of other minerals
• Get a good non-stick pan and reduce the amount of olive oil when cooking since it is best in it's pure form
• Research the best extra virgin olive oil to make sure they're not adding other refined oils which companies will sometimes do
• Alternate days of eating a can of tuna since there are risks to eating too much
• Find the best type of nut or nuts to eat (aside from deez -_-)
• Start making my protein shake with seeds and fruit, I was formerly eating a few pieces of fruit separately but this is a nice way to mixing them and a few other sources together

Some Observations

• Holy shit eggs are amazing, they were clearly the widest source of vitamins and minerals on this list
• Broccoli ain't too bad either
• You can see how regardless of where you live in the world there are sources to get the same benefits all the vitamins and minerals
• I thought it would be expensive to get sources for everything but as it turns out there's a LOT of overlap and the changes I'll be making are minimal

Phase II

The second phase of my diet overhaul will include understanding the quantities of each food that I will need to reach the daily recommended value of each respective vitamin and mineral. I am trying to keep an active lifestyle to keep my body conditioned as well which includes working out daily, so I may need higher quantities of some of these items that will require more research. I may consider taking some supplements as well which I will cover in Part II.

Let me know your thoughts or if you have any suggestions to help me improve my diet.